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What would you guys and girls (I'm assuming their may be girls here also!) work on to try to get the lightest and most aerodynamic bike set-up that is suitable for Ironman Triathlons and long time trials!

I appreciate this site seems to be catering for the road rider (which I am also... cat 3, racing with the Elites, 2's and 3's) but I would like to try to get a very lightweight Litespeed Blade that is perfect for Ironman triathlons... maybe sub 18lbs!?

Hi guys
Thanks for your replies. I gotta go swim coaching now (I am the head coach for a large tri club) and will post a full spec on the bike and post a pic or 2 tomorrow (once I get it back from the bike store!).
Mark

Since half of Ironmans are race on hilly and/or windy roads (France, Brazil, Spain, Hawaii, etc.) I'd suggest you a good range of wheels: aero (like Corimas or HED) for flatty courses, standard (Campy Neutron, Corima Winiums) for hilly/windy races...
Everything else doesn't matter: most important thing is your position on bike.
And I don't mean how much aero you are: the point is how much comfortable you feel on bike...
Obviously you can use different combinations of wheels (front standard, rear aero)...

This is what I've heard from my teammates, 6 of whom have been to World's in Hawaii (one of them finished 8th in his category, also 3 times finisher)...

Heres the spec for my Litespeed. I don't know how to accurately measure the exact weights but these are the manufacturers weights. Also a couple are guesses, like the cables, tyres etc... but can't be too far out.

All in all as it is it comes to around 17 lbs on paper but was told by the bike store mechanic it's closer to 20 lbs. Where is the remainder 3 lbs from??

I will post some pics of the bike as soon as I get it back from the bike store. Hopefully tomorrow!

I have been racing road races for 8 years and triathlons for 13 years. Represented Great Britain on 3 occasions at the World Championships over short course and long course. Ironman is what I love as it truly is the first across the line that wins.
My bike is set up perfect for comfort and speed over long distances. I just want to now make my bike less weight without sacraficing this comfort.
Mark

You've got a good set-up. I personally wouldn't change much except for the wheels. Spinergy's aren't the lightest wheels around and I think they weigh more than the 1400 grams you have listed. I would suggest a good multi-use wheelset like the Reynolds Stratus DV-UL or Zipp 404 tubulars. I'm guessing that you could lose about 400+ grams by going with the Reynolds.

Other than that you could get a set of Zero Gravity brakes and take off another 100+ grams. You could also get some XLab Xlevers brake levers which weigh 177 grams. But I wouldn't sacrifice aerodynamics for weight. The bad thing about really aero bikes is that they weigh a little more than road bikes. The aerobars for example add a tremendous amount of weight to the bike but it's worth it since they are so aerodynamically efficient.

The saddle has to stay! It's sooo comfortable for long distances in the aero position (50-120 miles!). All the other lightweight saddles are hardly the most comfortable for these types of rides. Comfort has to come first, lightweight second.

The Oval tri bars are indeed light but not as light as the deda set up. I searched high and low for a lightweight 'all in one' bar and the Deda seemed to be the lightest.
A road handlebar and clip on tri bar can be lighter but doesnt look the part on the Litespeed. I mean it's gotta look good hasn't it at this price end of the market!?

What is this SRP bolt kit you all talk about? Can you use it on the Dura Ace brakes I have?
Where can I buy lightweight bolts for every other part of my bike?
Are there any shops the UK that sell this type of stuff?

marktickner wrote:What is this SRP bolt kit you all talk about? Can you use it on the Dura Ace brakes I have?Where can I buy lightweight bolts for every other part of my bike?Are there any shops the UK that sell this type of stuff?